New Long Haul Flight Routes From The U.K. In 2018

When Qantas takes off from Heathrow to Perth on March 26, it’ll be the longest non-stop flight in the world. Harnessing the 787 Dreamliner’s fuel efficiency, the 17-hour flight will cover 9,009 miles. Of all 2018’s new routes, this is the one that will get aviation geeks most excited.

A 787 Dreamliner with the Qantas livery; when the airline flies non-stop from Heathrow to Perth in 2018, it will be the longest non-stop flight in the world. Photo credit: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images.

“We’ve said the Qantas Dreamliner is a game changer, and that’s becoming real today,” says Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce. “The Kangaroo Route has kept changing with new technology. It used to take four days and seven stops but now we’re able to link the UK and Australia in a single hop. It’s a level of convenience those in Europe have never had before.”

If 2017 was the story of British Airways emulating Norwegian’s transatlantic flight route, including Fort Lauderdale and Oakland, the opposite is true in February when Norwegian starts flights to the Argentinian capital of Buenos Aires, an established route for British Airways. Flying from Gatwick in 787 Dreamliners four times a week, it’s the first flight for Norwegian to South America, and a hugely exciting move for the no-frills airline.

Continuing a push towards long-haul routes. Stansted, London’s third airport, will see a new daily flight from Icelandic-owned Primera to Newark - joining Thomas Cook flights to New York, Orlando and Las Vegas. The flights will use the Airbus A321neos; flights start at £149.

Meanwhile, British Airways will be hoping to emulate the success of its route to Austin, which started in 2014, when it takes off to Nashville in May from Heathrow, with five flights a week. As with Austin, the airline will use Dreamliners and aim to tap into a long-standing British love affair with country music and provide the first transatlantic flight for this Tennessee city.

The Seattle skyline: Photo credit: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

The new transatlantic action isn’t just from London. Also in April, Primera starts four flights a week from Birmingham to Boston. In May, Thomas Cook will start flights from Manchester to Seattle. As well as a chance to explore one of the West Coast’s most enticing cities, it aims to be a gateway to Alaska-bound cruises. Meanwhile Delta heads to close neighbour and rival Portland in the same month.

Cardiff has been a long-neglected base. It’s primarily used for short-haul charter routes but is a convenient base for Wales and south west England. In May, Qatar Airways will be taking a punt that it can fill a daily Dreamliner to Doha; passengers will be able to use it to connect to flights across Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

Also away from the popular transatlantic routes, British Airways starts flying to Seychelles in March twice a week, a route it last flew in 2004. A classic honeymoon destination that celebrates 50 years of independence in 2018, expect demand for premium seats.